card review Beorn's House

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Review

Beorn's House

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Nearest Darkhaven: Dol Guldur Playable: Items (gold ring) Automatic-attacks: Men-each character faces 1 strike with 10 prowess (detainment against covert company) "...a courtyard, three walls of which were formed by the wooden house and its long wings."-Hob

Men. Each character in the company faces one strike (detainment against covert and hero companies). May be played keyed to Anduin Vales, Wold and Foothills, High Pass and Redhorn Gate; may also be played at non-heaven sites in these regions. may not be played against a company contaning a character with Beorn's House as home site.

Beornings :: MELE :: Man Faction :: 3 MPs :: R

Unique. Manifestation of hero Beornings. Playable at Beorn's House if the influence check is greater than 9.

First the site: It's a free-hold in a border-land. Pretty dangerous. You will be risking some nasty encounters with Dunedain, Elves, Men, Maiar and with the Lord of the Carrock. You had better have some cancellers.

The automatic attack isn't a piece of cake, either, for all characters will have to face a strike of 10 prowess, and someone must stay untapped. Orc Quarrels helps a lot here, as do some Strange Rations. Awaken Defenders makes the detainment attack normal against covert companies, but it didn't give any more strikes to the auto. Arouse Defenders makes an uncancellable 12-prowess attack (note that you may still cancel the strikes with the ever popular Ruse). Incite Defenders for an extra round of the automatic attack. Don't forget the threat of Tidings of Bold Spies - all together and you will face 2 attacks you can't evade, of 12 prowess against every character, no detainment and that's not the auto. If your opponent has played the Beornings with No Strangers at This Time, you would better just forget about it. And after all these problems you would be expecting some big MP item, but all you can play here are gold-rings (something like going to Barad-dur to play some healing herbs) and a 3 MP faction.

Now the hazard: It's a man, so you can use Rank Upon Rank to increase the prowess (sorry, no extra strikes), Scimitars of Steel and Helms of Iron for more prowess and body, Thrice Outnumbered for a nice recycle ability and Fury of the Iron Crown for a everybody-faces-a-15-prowess-stike for the price of two MP, or nothing if used as detainment (everyone tapped or your money back).

Unfortunately, you can only play in Anduin Vales (luckily central for both Minions and Heroes decks), Wold and Foothills, High Pass and Redhorn Gate (good to heros, but not so useful for minions) and in non-heaven sites in these regions. I think you can risk one or two Beorning Tolls in your deck, even with its restricted playability, especially in one-deck games, because you may tap all your opponent company with just one hazard. In longer games, you may just discard it and wait for the sideboard if you are facing a deck that does not go in these regions. As the Achilles's heel, you can't play Beorning Toll against a company with a character with Beorn's House as home site. At present date, that means Beorn and Wacho, both heros, so you have nothing to fear if you are playing against a Ringwraith.

Now the faction: It's a man faction that's worth 3 MPs,better than minions standard, with all those 2 MPs factions, and you need to roll more that 9, high for a hero faction, but normal for minions. The Mouth will have no trouble to put them in play.

Most important, it is the only minion faction that's playable in Anduin Vales. So what's the big deal, some of you may be wondering. Well, that's a very good focus to Trouble on All Borders. Every company that moves through Anduin Vales, Woodland Realm, Grey Mountain Narrows, Gundabad, High Pass, Wold and Foothills, Brown Lands, Southern Mirkwood and Western Mirkwood will face a man attack of 4@8 (you can enhance it to 5@9 or more), detainment against minions or normal against heros, for no MPs, and it will last until any play deck is exhausted, or your opponent plays Marvels Told/Voices of Malice (an average deck has 6-9 cards the opponent would like to discard, but he can put only three MT/VM in his deck). If your adversary is playing a coastal-deck, or one around Rivendell, no problem, play this nice faction, and choose one of his factions for Trouble on All Borders.

The Beornings/Trouble on All Borders combo is very powerful against the right deck, and particularly in a 2-deck game. You may have some problems against an underdeep deck, but nothing serious. You always can divide it, if the circumstances ask for it. Beorning Toll is a very potent card for a 1-deck game, much worth the risk of your opponent playing a deck that's doesn't pay a visit to Lorien and doesn't pass through Anduin Vales, since a tapped company can't make much, you have high chances to double your factions, allies or even items points, with an extra turn. As advice, try out this really annoying Detainment & roadblock concept in your next 1 deck game, just to see what you can accomplish with it.